Hoisting installations employing trucks with tipping tubs



NOV. 8, 1960 v 2,959,304

HQISTING INSTALLATIONS EMPLOYING TRUCKS WITH TIPPING TUBS Filed Feb. 5,1958 5 ShQGtS-ShGGt 1 l1 Fig.1

J. VlAL Nov. 8, 1960 HOISTING INSTALLATIONS EMPLOYING TRUCKS WITHTIPPING TUBS Filed Feb. 5, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 8, 1960 J. VIAL2,959,304

HOISTING INSTALLATIONS EMPLOYING TRUCKS WITH TIPPING TUBS Filed Feb. 5,1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Nov. 8, 1960 I v 2,959,304

HOISTING INSTALLATIONS EMPLOYING TRUCKS WITH TIPPING TUBS Filed Feb. 5,1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Fig. 6

J. VIAL Nov. 8, 1960 HOISTING INSTALLATIONS EMPLOYING TRUCKS WITHTIPPING TUBS Filed Feb. 5, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 2,959,304 Patented Nov.8, 1960 HOISTING INSTALLATIONS EMPLOYING TRUCKS WITH TIPPING TUBS JosephVial, 38 Ave. Hoche, Paris, France Filed Feb. 5, 1958, Ser. No. 713,405

Claims priority, application France Feb. 6, 1957 3 Claims. (Cl. 214-64)The present invention relates to improvements in hoisting installationscomprising one or more guided cages conveying trucks having tipping tubswhich are emptied without the truck leaving the cage at the emptyingstation.

It has for an object to provide installations which are simpler and moreeconomic than hitherto proposed arrangements, and which eliminate at thesurface, as in the hoisting techinque using skips, the handling'ormarshalling of trucks and the apparatus equipping the landings, whilstretaining underground the simplicity and economy of landings served bycages.

It consists essentially in utilising, in conjunction with a cagecomprising one or several lower decks reserved for hoisting the productsand constituted by a simple flooring provided with a rail tracksupporting the truck, a mechanical remotely controlled device which isinstalled either at the side of the track at each deck in the cage, orat a fixed emptying station in the pit-head frame and possibly at otherpositions along the pit shaft. When the cage is stopped at an emptyingstation the truck provided with a tipping tub is emptied in the hopperfor receiving the products. The cage may also comprise an upper deckarranged in a known manner in order to transport staff, workingequipment, implements and various materials.

The invention also includes various other features which are preferablyemployed and which will be more fully described hereinafter.

The invention will be more fully understood, by reference to thefollowing description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,given by way of example, and in which:

Figures 1 and 2 show schematically in elevation and in plan a completehoisting installation comprising a single cage and counterweightconstructed according to the invention and in which the tipping deviceis placed in the cage.

Figures 3 and 4 show respectively an elevational view and an end view ofthe hoisting cage.

Figure 5 shows the hydraulic jack having an automatic locking fingerwhich ensures the tipping of the tub of the truck and possibly itsshaking in the tipped position when the products extracted areparticularly muddy or sticky.

Figure 6 shows an elevational view of a cage at an emptying station inthe case where the tipping device is placed at a fixed station in theshaft of the pit.

Figure 7 shows constructional details of the hydraulic jack of Figure 6.

Referring to Figures 1 to 5, the installation shown comprises, in amanner known, a shaft 1 having a ladder section 8 and a hoisting sectionin which travels a cage 5 having rigid guiding means 6 and acounterweight 4 which is guided by two cables 7.

The shaft is surmounted by a hoisting tower 2 at the head of which isinstalled a winch having a Koepe pulley 3 having a large rim and a smalldiameter which accommodates a layer of four cables 9 supporting on oneside the cage 5 and on the other side the counterweight 4.

A balancing cable 10 is suspended at one of its ends to the lower floorof the cage and at the other end to the lower part of the counterweight.

The hopper 11 for receiving the coal or ores which rests against thetower framework 2 above the ladder compartment 8 carries at the upperpart of its rear face and as an extension of the latter, a shutter 12for the sliding of the coal or ores, which is hinged about a horizontalaxis in the manner of a movable bridge.

A suitable mechanical device, for example a pneumatic jack, not shown onthe drawings, enables the movable shutter to be turned back towards theinterior of the hoisting tower when the cage is stopped at the desiredvlevel, in such a manner that the free end of the shutter rests againstthe lower floor 14 of the cage in the position shown on Figures 1 and 4.

Approximately at the level of the hinging axis of the movable shutter 12is arranged a platform, secured to the tower framework 2, and on whichis arranged the control cabin for the hoist at a position from which theengine-man 17 behind his control desk 16 can see perfectly the truck 20to be tipped at the lower deck of the cage, the movable shutter 12 andthe hopper 11 for receiving the coal or ores.

In the embodiment illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, the cage comprises anupper deck arranged in a known manner, from which is suspended by meansof four rigid legs 13 the lower deck comprising a simple fioor 14 onwhich the track 15 is placed.

The full truck 20 caged by a known process at one of the bottom landingsis maintained in the cage by means of stop-blocks 18 and dogs 19arranged so as effectively to restrain any displacement of the cagedtruck.

A holding device preventing tilting of the truck is constituted by anangle-iron 27 (Figure 5) welded on brackets 28 fixed on the floor (14)of the lower deck of the cage, which retains the frame 22 of the truck,during the tipping of the tub 21, thus preventing the lifting up of thehubs of the two wheels 25 situated on the side opposite to the door ofthe truck.

The truck 20 is a wagon of the Granby type with a tub tipping laterallywhich does not comprise a tipping roller but a simple handling shaft 24mounted in the manner of a basket handle in the central part of thelower edge of the tub 21.

The lateral door 23 hinged on the tub opens automatically, according toa known method, when the latter tips, through the effect of two links 26which are also hinged, on one hand on the frame and on the other hand atthe end of the lateral panels of the door.

In the installation schematically shown in Fignlres 1 to 5, the tippingapparatus for the tub of the truck is constituted by a single-actinghydraulic jack 30 whose cylinder 31 is placed towards its top, the lowerend of the rod 32 of the piston being hinged on the brackets 28 whichare rigidly fixed to the lower floor of the cage, by means of ahorizontal shaft 33 parallel to the track.

At the low part of the cylinder is fixed a hand 34 which is suitably cutout in order to hook on to the handling shaft 24 of the tub of the truckin the course of the lifting movement of the jack.

Inside this hand is mounted, hinged about the axis 36, a hook-shapedfinger 35 of which a cam 37 adapted to move about an axis parallel tothe preceding one, causes Alever 38 keyed on the axis of the cam 37causes its rotation and consequently the tipping of the locking finger35, its carp-tail-shaped free end being operated during the movements ofthe jack, by a roller 39 mounted loosely -on a shaft 40 integral withthe median cross-piece 29 ,of-the lower deck of the cage.

The hydraulic pump having an electric motor actuating the jack and its.oil tank, which are not shown on the drawings, are located in thethickness of the intermediate floor of the cage, the current supplybeing ensured by simple contacts (.alsonot represented on the drawings)which are respectively mounted on the external side of the .lower floorof the cage and on the upper portion of the movable .nose for thesliding of the coal or ,ores.

-By means of an additional lever which issuitably arranged at the righthand side ofthe control desk 16 of the hoist, the engine-man causes themovable shutter i2 for thefsliding of the. coal or ore to be turnedagainst the lowerfioor 14 of the cage; by pushing this lever to itsmaximum he actuates the tipping jack .of the truck. which is lifted up,on condition however. that the movable shutter has in fact reached theend of its travel, and come into contact with the cage.

During the extension of the jack, the hand 34 mounted on the lower partof the cylinder couples on to the handling shaft 24 of the tub of thetruck and causes it to tip.

During this first phase of the movement, the lower branch of thecarp-tailed lever 38 which is operated by the roller 39 causes therotation of the cam 37 which turns the locking finger 35 down on to thehandling shaft24 of the truck, effectively imprisoning it, as inside aclosed hand, owing to the shape of the cam which ensures that themovement is irreversible.

If the coal or ore is a normal product, which does not adhere much tothe sides of the tub, the engine-man can release the lever controllingthe tipping of the truck, the jack finishes its complete travelcorresponding to an inclination of the bottom of the tub of the order of50. and comes back rearwardly.automatically, bringing the tub back toits normal position.

During the first part of this return travel, the upper branch of thecarp-tailed lever 38 meets the roller 39 and tips and drives in itsmovement the cam 37 which pushes back the locking finger 35.

The handling shaft 24 of the tub of the truck being thus freed, the jackcompletes its return travel and draws aside laterally against themediancross-piece 29 of the lower deck of the cage against which it rests bythe action of a springdi fixed on the lower floor of the cage and whosefree end pushes back a heel 42 which is integral with the hinge joint ofthe jack.

The jack is kept in a positive manner in its withdraw position by twoloose rollers 44 mounted on shafty45 integral with the jack, whichengage behind two cheeks integral with the median cross-piece 29 duringthe return travel of the jack.

The movable nose 12 of the hopper for receiving the coal or ore is thenautomatically lifted up and the freed cage is ready for movement up ordown its shaft as controlled by the engine-man.

Suitably disposed locking mechanisms, which are not shown on thedrawings, do not allow the raising of the movable nose 12 before the tub21 of the truck has returned to the normal position and also prevent astarting of the hoist if the movable nose of the hopper is notcompletely raised.

If the contents of the truck is constituted by abnormally thin and moistcoal or ore sticking to the oottorn of the tub, the engine-man keeps inhand the tipping lever of the truck and by alternate operations of thislever causes a real shaking of the tub of the truck in the inclined andopen position against rubber stops .43 suitably disposed under theintermediate-floor of the cage.

In this embodiment the jack is placed above the-track, it couldhave beenunderneath. The arrangement .in which the jack is completely above mightadvantageously be utilised in order to tip trucks in any desired pointof the track without it being necessary to hollow out the platform.

Figures 6 and 7 show by way of modification the case when the tippingdevice is arranged at a fixed station in the shaft framework.

Thecage 50- is shown stopped atthe top landing,.-the shutter for thesliding of the coal or ore resting against the lowerfioor 53, of thecage.

The tipping device consists in a double-acting jack whose cylindersods-hinged at .its lower. part on the horizontal beam 55 which forms apart of the shaft framework.

The guiding cables :56 and the counterweight of the cage leave enoughspace so that the jack in the sideways position 57 may be housed. Agangway 65 may be arrangedin orgler to facilitate the maintenance of theinstallation. V V

A small double-acting jack 58 enables the tipping jack togo over fromthe sideways position 57 ,to the working position 54.

At-the end of thepistonSQ of. the tipping jackis situated the coupling60 .which issimilar to that of the preceding case, the locking of thefinger being this time controlled by the action of the roller 62 on thecarptailed-shaped cam :61, this roller being mounted on the cheeksn63whichare integral with the upper bottom of the cylinder 54.

The operation is as follows: As soon as the cage stops at thetoplanding, the engine-man presses on the controlling tipping lever,which simultaneously causes the movable shutter 64 for the sliding ofthe coal or ore to turn down and causes the tipping jack to tip from itssideways position 57 to its working position 54 this position beingdefined by the stop of the hand 60 on the handling shaft 66.

By pressing to the maximum on this same lever, the engine-man causes therising of the piston 5-9 of the tipping jackwhose hand 60 lifts up thetruck. Soon after the beginning of the tipping of the tub, the cam 61meets the roller 62 which causes the locking of the hand. During thetipping movement of the tub the small jack 58 remains floating.

The other operations proceed as in the preceding case. The cage can onlystart again when spitably disposed contacts have ensured that thetipping jack has gone back to its sideways position and that the shutterfor the sliding of the coal or ore has freed the passage of the cage.

This modification has the advantage of lightening the cage which nolonger contains the tippingjack, the pump and its engine. Therebyitsmaintenance is rendered easier. Lastly, in the case when the cageraisesseveral trucks, a single jack replaces the different jackssituated at the various decks of the cage.

The description of the installations which use our invention and theanalysis of their operation, as has been stated above, emphasize theadvantages deriving from the simplicity, the effectiveness, the safetyand economy in materials as well as with respect to stafi,ofthis'ho-isting technique.

It will be understood that the invention is in no way limited to thespecific embodiments described, and that various modifications may bemade. For example the installation may have two identical cages, or thetrucksmay run on sloping planes. Furthermore, the trucks may havealateral tipping, and run singly or in convoy, on sloping planes or ingalleries and are tipped by means of 'a'mechanism similar-to thatdescribed above, after stopping at the landing.

What I claim is:

1. A hoisting and dumping installation comprising a vertical shaft and acage vertically movable in said shaft, said cage being adapted toreceive at least one side-dumping .carxhaviiig a tiltable' load-carryingtub, a dumping hopper adjacent said shaft, a pivoted chute adapted tobridge the gap between said hopper and the tub of the car carried bysaid cage when said car is in position for dumping the contents of thetub into said hopper, and a dumping device actuatable when said cage isstationary in said shaft to discharge the load carried by said carwithout removing the car from the cage, said dumping device beingeffective to grip the car tub to effect dumping of said load and toeffect positive guiding of said tub from its initial position to atipped position and back to its initial position, said dumping devicecomprising a hydraulic jack equipped with a hand-member which can lockon to the tub of the car at the beginning of the extension of the jackand unlock therefrom upon completion of the return travel of the jack,the hand-member being provided with a hook-shaped locking finger whichis automatically actuated during the movement of the jack to lock on tothe tub, the hydraulic jack being provided with a roller and beingprovided with a cam suitably cut to cause an irreversible displacementand automatically actuated during the movement of the jack by a leverhaving a carp-tailed shaped end which engages with the roller mounted onthe jack, whereby said locking finger engages with the tub at thebeginning of the lifting travel of the jack, thus achieving a safeconnection between said jack and the tub.

2. A hoisting and dumping installation comprising a vertical shaft and acage vertically movable in said shaft, said cage being adapted toreceive at least one side-dumping car having a tiltable load-carryingtub, a dumping hopper adjacent said shaft, a pivoted chute adapted tobridge the gap between said hopper and the tub of the car carried bysaid cage when said car is in position for dumping the contents of thetub into said hopper, and a dumping device actuatable when said cage isstationary in said shaft to discharge the load carried by said carwithout removing the car from the cage, said dumping device beingeifective to grip the car tub to effect dumping of said load and toeifect positive guiding of said tub from its initial position to atipped position and back to its ini- 4 6 inclining said dumping deviceinto working position to reach the tub of the car.

3. A hoisting and dumping installation comprising a vertical shaft and acage vertically movable in said shaft, said cage being adapted toreceive at least one side-dumping car having a tiltable load-carryingtub, a dumping hopper adjacent said shaft, a pivoted chute adapted tobridge the gap between said hopper and the tub of the car carried bysaid cage when said car is in position for dumping the contents of thetub into said hopper, and a dumping device actuatable when said cage isstationary in said shaft to discharge the load carried by said carwithout removing the car from the cage, said dumping device beingeffective to grip the car tub to effect dumping of said load and toeffect positive guiding of said tub from its initial position to atipped position and back to its initial position, said dumping devicecomprising a hydraulic jack equipped with a hand-member which can lockon to the tub of the car at the beginning of the extension of the jackand unlock therefrom upon completion of the return travel of the jack,the hand-member being provided with a hook-shaped locking finger whichis automatically actuated during the movement of the jack to lock on tothe tub, the hydraulic jack being provided with a roller and beingprovided with a cam suitably cut to cause an irreversible displacementand automatically actuated during the movement of the jack by a leverhaving a carp-tailed shaped end which engages with the roller mounted Onthe jack, whereby said locking finger engages with the tub at thebeginning of the lifting travel of the jack, thus achieving a safeconnection between said jack and the tub, said dumping device beingdisposed outside the path in which the cage travels, and an auxiliaryjack inclining said dumping device into Working position to reach thetub of the car,

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS787,189 Kerst Apr. 11, 1905 1,940,732 Schmohl Dec. 26, 1933 2,470,472,Christopher May 17, 1949 2,601,163 Miller June 17, 1952

